Travel Alert: Thanksgiving Strike at O'Hare International Airport Has Been Moved

WISCONSIN -- Good news for Wisconsin travelers over the Thanksgiving travel rush - sort of.

Workers at O'Hare International Airport will go on strike this month, but the work stoppage will come after the traditional Thanksgiving holiday travel period, much to the relief of many airline passengers.

Leaders of Service Employees International Union Local 1 announced Monday via Twitter and an airport press conference that O'Hare workers will strike on Tuesday, Nov. 29, the Chicago Tribune reports. Those hundreds of employees, who mostly work for private contractors, include baggage handlers and cleaning staff, the report stated.

O'Hare workers are fighting to raise pay to $15 an hour and to unionize, the Tribune reports. The walkout is part of a "national day of disruption" in 340 cities, according to Fight for 15, an international workers' movement.

O'Hare Airport workers vote to STRIKE on November 29th! #PovertyDoesntFly #FightFor15 pic.twitter.com/iVerPyrAM5

More People Using Mitchell

According to airport officials, 540,629 passengers used MKE, nearly 40,000 more than September
2015. The growth continues a positive trend with passenger numbers increasing eight out of the first nine months this year, and 3.16% growth year to date.

New air service from ultra-low cost carrier Frontier Airlines attracted travelers from Wisconsin and northern Illinois looking for low airfares. Since September 2015, Frontier has added nonstop service from MKE to Dallas, Las Vegas and Philadelphia. Frontier is also launching nonstop service to Phoenix on December 7th.

Mitchell Airport offers nonstop flights to 37 destinations coast-to-coast, and 160 international destinations are available from Milwaukee with easy, one-stop connections. MKE is the only airport in Wisconsin or northern Illinois to be served by all the major domestic carriers including Southwest, Delta, American, United, Alaska, Frontier, Air Canada and OneJet. The complete list of nonstop cities can be found at
www.mitchellairport.com.

O'Hare International Airport (photo via Patch archive)

Joe Vince (Patch Staff) contributed to this report.